Control channel protocol and hardware-independent downstream services software design for broadband devices
OwnerChris Del Sordoinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A broadband terminal device that receives messages containing data destined for client applications running on the terminal. The messages are received by a control channel router via one or more input ports. The router removes the payload data from the messages and distributes the data to client applications in accordance with a predetermined priority of the ports which receive messages and requests made by client applications for the data. The terminal also includes a service acquisition interface that enables the client applications to establish connections to receive the data such that the requests made by applications for data may be hardware and protocol independent.
Claims24
A mechanism in a broadband terminal for managing downstream data distributed from remote devices to client applications via a plurality of diverse input ports, comprising:
- a control channel router that receives messages containing the downstream data from the input ports and distributes the data to the client applications in accordance with client application requests for the data;
- and
- a service acquisition interface that enables the client applications to establish connections to receive the data by requesting the data independently of one of a message protocol or a port from which the data is received by said broadband terminal device.
A terminal device adapted to operate within a broadband environment and running a plurality of client applications and a mechanism for managing downstream data distributed from remote devices to the client applications, comprising:
- a plurality of diverse input ports that receive data;
- and
- platform software residing on said terminal device that controls the processing of the data in accordance with client application requests for the data and a predetermined priority of said input ports.
A method of routing downstream data to client applications within a broadband terminal device from at least one input port, comprising:
- receiving, at a router, an event indicative of the receipt of a message at an input port;
- searching through a database to determine if there is a client application for which the data contained in the message is destined;
- and
- sending the data to the client if there is a client application for which the data is destined, or otherwise discarding the message.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.